Young Jane Young

This is the twenty-fifth book in my #atozchallenge! I’m challenging myself to read a book from my shelves that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Let’s clear those shelves and delve into that backlist!

YOUNG JANE YOUNG weaves together the story of five women–Rachel Grossman, who worries about her college-aged daughter, Aviva and her future. Jane Young, who lives in Maine with her daughter, Ruby. Ruby Young, who has led a quiet life with her mom, until now. Embeth Levin, the wife of a famous congressman. And Aviva Grossman, who became Internet famous after a terrible scandal. These five women are bound together by this scandal and the man at its center.

This was an interesting read, told from the perspective of each of our female protagonists. Zevin is excellent at portraying different voices, from young Ruby to the older Rachel and Embeth, and I really enjoyed how strong of a storyteller she was. Some of the women’s stories were told in unique formats, such as all email or a “choose your own adventure” style. It was different, took a little getting used to, but overall worked for this book.

This is less of an action packed tale than a character-driven one, focused on how Aviva’s actions affect everyone going forward. It has a political bent, but centers more around emotion, relationships, and family. It does a good job portraying the double standards applied to women–in politics, in marriage, and more. My favorite character was probably Ruby, but I thought Zevin did a good job of bringing each woman to life and showing their complex feelings and flaws.

I would have liked more of an ending to this story, especially finding out what was next for Ruby and Rachel. But this was an interesting and different read, and I’m glad I picked it up. As always, as I get nearly to the end of the alphabet, I’m glad my challenge has gotten me to choose some books I might not have otherwise.

This was one of the most interesting books I’ve read in a while. I have been moving into feminist literature lately, and that is what first caught my interest. Aviva’s story could easily have been taken from the headlines, but somehow remains personal without losing the topical. The story is told from various perspectives which can be disorienting, but in this book, it is not. Instead, the additional perspectives add depth to a story by showing how it affects the side characters as much as the protagonist. A fast, entertaining read with depth.

I enjoyed this read and liked the writer’s voice, giving these characters a funny inner monologue or stream of consciousness thoughts. I especially enjoyed the mother Rachel’s thoughts, she was a stitch! The story included an interesting use of first person narrative for five women to tell the story: 1 Jane’s mother Rachel, 2 Jane the daughter, 3 Jane’s daughter Ruby, 4 the Congressman’s wife Embeth, and finally 5) Aviva (Jane) to wrap up the story. This all-female perspective built sympathy for the women, all of whom were wronged in different ways. I also enjoyed the plot device used at the end of Aviva’s narrative showing the different choices she had, including the ones she didn’t take crossed out. My one complaint is with Ruby, I don’t like how she turned on her mother at the end. But overall an interesting story showing how women are not judged or treated equally when it comes to politics.